Wednesday, April 17, 2024

How Do You Register A Domain Name In The Us

Don't Miss

Applicant Files Timely Statement Of Use Or Extension Request

How to Register a Domain Name – HostGator Tutorial

The applicant has six months from the mailing date of the notice of allowance in which to either file a statement of use or file an extension request. More than one extension request may be filed, but a limit exists on the total number of extension requests permitted and the timeframe that they must be submitted within. Please review the additional information for the SOU use and extension request processes.

Watch the Statement of Use video for more information about submitting a statement of use.

Choose A Domain Registrar

A registrar is a company that reserves and manages domain names. While the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers manages all domains worldwide, a registrar deals with them on your behalf.

Wix.com is a registrar and also a web-hosting service, meaning you can not only purchase a unique domain but also create your site on the same platform. With the purchase of a premium plan,you get a free domain name for a year.

Alternative registrars include businesses like GoDaddy, Domain.com and NameCheap.

Determine Your Dns Host

We do not offer DNS hosting. This means youll need to operate authoritative DNS servers for your domain or obtain services from a DNS hosting provider. Where available, work with your IT support team to determine how youll host a new domain.

You do not need to have your hosting situation determined before making a request for a .gov domain. However, the domain cannot be activated until name server addresses are added to the .gov registrar and they are responding authoritatively.

For more information, see What are the name server requirements for .gov domains?

Recommended Reading: Do I Need Domain Protection

Why A Good Domain Name Is Important

A domain name is your unique identifier among billions of other websites on the web. Thats why having a memorable and easy-to-type name is essential for having an online presence.

Your domain name serves as an extension of your personal or business name. In that sense it:

  • Improves recognition and awareness.
  • Adds extra credibility to your venture.
  • Eventually boosts visitors recall.

Also, choosing a good domain name is important for SEO. Several years ago exact match domains were all the rage, but today most people choose brandable domain names.

Memorable domain names get typed to Google more frequently. Algorithms keep track of that and assign more authority to your website. As the branded search volume grows, your domain name earns extra authority points, so that it gets easier to rank for related keywords.

With that being said, lets move on to the how-to part.

Good to know:how to make a website with WordPress

How To Get A Domain Name From Domaincom

How to Register a Domain Name for Free

Domain.com is a reputable domain registrar, launched in 1998. Over 1.2 million websites are registered with them.

Domain.com features the most popular top level domains such as .com, .net, .org, .co, along with over 25 county-specific domain extensions .

They are mostly selling affordable domain names with most names priced in the $9.99-$12.99/year range. If you are lucky, you can also steal a deal and buy your domain name for as low as $2.99/year.

For that price you get:

  • 1-year domain ownership.
  • Free SSL certificate for extra security.
  • Automatic email forwarding to your domain.
  • DNS registration and management tools.

Also, you can purchase extra Domain Privacy+Protection for your domain . In this case, your personal details will not be displayed publicly in the WHOIS/ICANN directories. Plus, the registrar will also run extra security checks.

Sounds sweet? Heres how to register a domain name on Domain.com.

Step 1: Run a quick search to verify that the domain name you are eying is available.

Step 2: Pick your domain extension. Go for .com since its the most familiar option among users and thus, people, tend to type .com before trying anything else.

Your choice gets automatically added to your cart with a 2-year privacy protection subscription. This ones optional, so you can remove it during the next step. Also, you can change your domain renewal period from one year to five years.

Moreover, you can pick some add-on services such as:

Recommended Reading: Should I Get A Domain Name

Tips When Making Your Ca Purchase

Always register the domain name yourself

Never let third parties, such as a marketing agency, complete a registration on your behalf. This can become a problem if you part ways and no longer have access to the account managing your domain name.

Register common variations of your name

If your company or product is commonly misspelled, register the alternate domain names and forward them to your primary website. This helps protect your brand identity and ensures no one else can register these domain names.

Provide accurate contact information

CIRA and your registrar will use the contact information provided during the registration process to communicate important information about your domain name.

Register a .CA with French-accented characters

The .CA domain registry supports French accented characters within domain names: é, ë, ê, è, â, à, æ, ô, , ù, û, ü, ç, î, ï, ÿ. When a .CA domain name is registered, all variations with accented characters are reserved for the original registrant exclusively.

Choose a registration term length that works for you

You can register a domain name from one to 10 years at a time. A longer registration period, combined with setting up auto-renewal with your registrar, can help you ensure your .CA domain name remains registered and active.

Protect your domain

Bottom Line On How To Register A Domain Name

Registering your domain is an essential but simple step in building a website. All you need to do is choose a suitable domain name, find a registrar and register it within a few minutes! Coming with the ideal name remains to be the toughest part where you have to consider multiple factors. You may have to go with an alternative because your first choice will not always be up for grabs.

That said, choosing the right registrar is also crucial. The right registration service can help you get a domain for free along with a free SSL certificate if you buy one of its hosting plans. Weve shortlisted Bluehost, HostGator, and Namecheap for the best domain name registration services at a reasonable price.

Read Also: How To Change My Email Domain Name

Check For Domain Availability

When users enter a URL in their browser, the browser sends a request to a global network of servers that are able to locate your website using something called the domain name system .

The DNS is a universally recognized, decentralized system for naming websites. This is what allows computers, phones, and any other device that can access the internet to find the webpage a user is looking for.

Checking domain availability only takes a couple of seconds, and nearly every registrar and hosting service has a free domain name search tool that allows you to do this . Here are a few tools for quickly checking the availability of a domain:

Remember that domain names are universal, so if a domain name is unavailable from one provider, its unavailable from all of them. Whats great about these tools is that theyll often suggest similar domains that are available if yours isnt.

If your domain name is unavailable, you might get a message back about brokering the domain. This means that the domain name is taken, but the registrar offers a service wherein they will negotiate with the domain owner on your behalf to try and get them to sell their domain name.

Although snagging your first-choice domain name might sound enticing, its important to understand the risks associated with attempting to broker a domain name.

Learn more: Domain Name Services: Which Hosting Provider Should You Trust?

What Is Domain Sniping

How To Register A Domain

Domain sniping, also known as “domain drop catching,” is the practice of registering a domain name immediately after it expires. For more information on how to avoid domain sniping, check out this support guide:

Need additional assistance?

Copyright 2022 HostGator.com LLC. All Rights Reserved.

HostGator Website Transfers

HostGator is committed to making it easy to transfer your site to your new hosting account. We can transfer website files, databases, scripts, and one free domain registration transfer.

What qualifies me for a free transfer?

HostGator provides free transfers for new accounts within 30 days of sign-up, and to newly upgraded accounts. For upgraded accounts it must be an inter-server upgrade to qualify. Please note that downgraded accounts do not qualify for free transfers.

Depending on which type of account you sign up for, we offer differing numbers of free transfers. Please refer to the chart below to see what we include for new packages.

Full cPanel Transfers is the number of cPanel to cPanel transfers that are included.

Max. Manual Transfers is the maximum number of Manual Transfers that are included with your account.

Total Free Transfers is the total number websites that we will move for you.

Account Type
Unlimited2 100

1While we can do unlimited cPanel to cPanel transfers for you, depending on your account, you will have a limited number of Manual Transfers.

Unmetered Web Hosting

How much disk space and bandwidth will my plan include?

You May Like: How To Negotiate For A Domain Name

How To Choose The Perfect Domain Name

Your domain name shapes your brand identity. A well-chosen domain name serves you well in every department from branding to developing your sites SEO strategy. This is why we recommend putting time and thought into choosing the perfect domain. Heres a short guide just for you.

  • Your website domain should represent your brand: If your brands name is Apple, then your domain should ideally be apple.com. We understand that this is not always possible, well come to that later.
  • Choose a short domain name: The shorter it is, the better. Longer names are difficult to remember and dont look as catchy. Aim for something in the range of six to 14 characters.
  • Include a keyword you want to target: Your domain identity contributes to your sites SEO. If youre starting an online store that sells tires, include the keyword tires in your domain to rank better.
  • .com is king: If you can find an ideal .com domain, it should be your first choice. This is simply because .com domains are the most popular. However, there are no technical or SEO reasons why you shouldnt go with a different extension.
  • Avoid numbers and special characters: Try to stay away from numbers and any other special characters in your domain. Its better to stick with letters only.

Search For Your Domain Name’s Availability

Once you have found the right domain registrar for you, you’ll need to search for your domain name using the registrar’s search bar. There are millions of domain names out there, with thousands more added daily.

If you have your heart set on a domain name before doing a search, you might be disappointed to find it is already taken. Keep an open mind and incorporate important keywords into your domain when appropriate.

You May Like: What Should I Do After Buying A Domain Name

High Availability Reliability And Scalability

Amazon Route 53 is built using AWSâs highly available and reliable infrastructure and is designed to automatically scale to handle very large query volumes.

The distributed nature of our DNS servers helps ensure a consistent ability to route your end users to your application. Route 53 is designed to provide the level of dependability required by important applications and is backed by the

The close integration of AWS services allows users to perform changes to their architecture and scale resources to accommodate increasing Internet traffic volume without significant configuration and management requirements.

Also Check: Can I Create My Own Domain

Registering A Domain Name With Hostgator

How to register cheap but efficient domain names
  • Private Name Servers
  • LaunchPad is HostGator’s domain registrar. Any registered domains will be part of this system during the initial account setup. LaunchPad allows you to register a domain directly at hostgator.com/domains or within the Customer Portal.

    This article discusses the following topics:

  • What is domain sniping
  • Don’t Miss: How To Setup Dmarc For A Domain

    Register Your Domain Name To Give Your Website The Uniqueness It Deserves

    While registering your domain name may be a short-term task, its a long-term commitment. Whatever youre building a website for, your domain will act as the anchor of your online presence and stick with you for years to come.

    It can help your SEO, act as a pathway for users to learn more about your brand, and make it easier for customers to spread the word about your products.

    How To Register A Domain Name For Free

    Youve heard the rumor about free domain names. Is it true?

    Yes! There are actually ways to get a free domain name for your website.

    First, you can get a free domain name for a web hosting provider such as Bluehost.

    They offer every new user a 1-year free domain with any of their hosting plans. You can either register a brand new domain name with them or transfer a domain name, registered with another company.

    Some other hosting providers who also have a 1-year free domain policy:

    • InMotion Hosting

    Note: The downside of getting a domain name from a hosting provider is more expensive renewals. After a free year, most hosting providers will charge a higher renewal fee, compared to domain registrars.

    Read Also: How To Claim A Domain Name Back

    Make It Brandable Not Generic

    Creative, memorable domain names are always better than generic ones. After all, your domain name is how people will find, remember, and spread the word about your business on the internet. Its much better to have something that aligns with your brand instead of a domain name thats made up of a bunch of general keywords.

    For example, can you tell the difference between cheapcarinsurance.com and affordableautoinsurance.com? Which one would you trust when it comes to buying insurance? Probably neither. Both sound a little spammy, and theyre terribly generic.

    On the other hand, youll probably know where the domain names progressive.com or geico.com are going to point you to. Those companies have invested in their brands, and theyve used them in their domain names. You can trust that these sites are legitimate.

    Even if you havent built up trust and loyalty yet, you can start by choosing a strong domain name that fits your brand.

    What Is Icann And How Is It Related To Registries And Registrars

    How to Register a Domain Name – Beginners Guide!

    Answer:

    ICANN is managed by a Board of Directors, which is composed of representatives of the Supporting Organizations, sub-groups that focus on specific sections of the policies under ICANNs realm, independent representatives of the general public interest that are selected through a nominating committee in which all of the constituencies of ICANN are represented and finally the President and CEO, appointed by the rest of the Board.

    Currently, there are three Supporting Organizations: 1) The Generic Names Supporting Organization that focuses on policy making on generic top top-level domains , 2) The Country Code Names Supporting Organization which deals with policy regarding country code top-level domains , and 3) The Address Supporting Organization which deals with policy on IP addresses.

    The duties of ICANN are broad and variable. They include the regulation of larger scale issues involving the general structure and design of the Internet, something that is important to keeping the system working smoothly and efficiently, and involvement in the regulation of seemingly smaller details, such as issues with specific domain names as well as specific registrars. Many have described ICANN as serving the roles of both the Better Business Bureau and the Federal Communications Commission all in one, as they both keep track of the businesses involved in registration as well as the function of the Internet itself.

    Still need help?

    Recommended Reading: How To Acquire A Domain

    How Do I Transfer A Us Domain

    Transferring your .us domain name is a fast and easy process. To get started, you’ll need an Authorization Code from the registrar that currently has the domain registered. Once you have that, get started by clicking “Transfer Now” below or visit our Transfers Page, enter your domain name to transfer in, provide the Authorization Code, and our system will process the transfer.

    Every .us domain transfer into 101domain includes an additional year renewal, so you’re not losing any time, just saving money and gaining the access to the largest portfolio of extensions in the business and 101domain’s powerful domain management system. If you are not provided an Authorization Code or having problems locating it, contact our Domain Specialists to help you navigate the process.

    Starting @8.49 USD / yr

    How To Register A Domain Name

    This article was co-authored by Stan Kats. Stan Kats is a Professional Technologist and the COO and Chief Technologist for The STG IT Consulting Group in West Hollywood, California. Stan provides comprehensive technology solutions to businesses through managed IT services, and for individuals through his consumer service business, Stan’s Tech Garage. Stan holds a BA in International Relations from The University of Southern California. He began his career working in the Fortune 500 IT world. Stan founded his companies to offer an enterprise-level of expertise for small businesses and individuals.wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, several readers have written to tell us that this article was helpful to them, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 557,340 times.

    Registering your domain name is the first step in establishing your online presence and reaching visitors. We’ll show you how to create and register your domain, avoid some of the pitfalls that can arise, and choose the best domain name to make sure that your site reaches the most people. Read below if you want to get on your way to a successful website!

    Recommended Reading: How Much Does Domain Registration Cost

    More articles

    Popular Articles